A Statement From The Coalition for Sensible Safeguards

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it will not meet the deadline for issuing anti-smog rules that are designed to protect the health and well-being of Americans. The agency’s inability to issue a rule by a deadline agreed upon in court illustrates the difficulty in developing crucial public protections.

The primary regulatory problem our country faces is not that regulators impose unreasonable burdens on business. It is that Big Business has undue influence over our legislative and regulatory processes. We are again witnessing the cost of regulatory delay. Because of the corrupting influence of Big Business polluters, more Americans will suffer from serious health problems such as asthma attacks and an increased risk of respiratory death.

It is imperative that the EPA and the Obama administration stand up to the intense pressure they are facing from industry groups and their allies in Congress. The American people are counting on them.

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The Coalition for Sensible Safeguards is a coalition of consumer, labor, scientific, research, good government, faith, community, health, environmental, and public interest groups, as well as concerned individuals, joined in the belief thatour country’s system of regulatory safeguards provides a stable framework that secures our quality of life and paves the way for a sound economy that benefits us all. For more information about the coalition, go to www.sensiblesafeguards.org.